Bookstack



J. H. FORD Aug. 13, 1935.

BOOKSTACK Filed Aug. 25, 1952 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Ill,

Aug. 13, 1935. H F R 2,011,356

BOOKSTACK Filed Aug. 25, 1952 '3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Aug. 13, 1935. J FORD 2,011,356

' BOOKSTACK Filed Aug. 25, 1932 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 'M M W l a v' m Patented Aug. 13, 1935 UNITED QOKSTAO John Howard Ford, Washington, D. rrliqatiqn Au ust 25, 1932, Serial No. 630,470,

17 Claims.

design and arrangement of satisfactory shelving problem which up to, the present, been considered as demanding particular forms of building construction. It has been considered necessary to especially design buildings. vvlierelibrary I shelving is to beinstalled. Thisi hpairs the use fulness ofthe building for other purposes and necessitates special forms of c onstruction. In

like manner too freguently the book shelving is considered a part of the building. In this way it is not readily adaptable for installation in ordinary structures.

It is an object of my invention to provide a bookstack which may be readily assembled and install-ed in the usual forms of building construction and withoutspecial modification of the latter. It is also an .obiect of my invention to pro Vide a boolrstacii which may be varied in its size, proportions and arrangelrient so -that it may be fitted to the area it is to cc u y or subsequentv n all d With qual icienc n a ife tni location.

A fur h ob ct. o my nve t on is h d s of a bookstaek which may be wholly or to agre'at extent supported from above such as the ceiling, girders or the like of a building so that no permanent modification of or attachment to either the floor or columns is required. In this way the floor a w ims a e Ke e e an asil cleaned.

In thisvvay a boolgstacl; is provided which may be wholly removed irorn an? be? at any time, leaving the cleared space entirely free from b'ookstack parts and ready for ether occupancy, and the said boohstacksrnay be readily eerected in the same or other space with ordinary tools.

Among the iurtherobjects of my invention is a bookstack assembled from ordinary shapes of sheet metal and angle forms without special fabricating equipment.

The bookstack so designed is economical of manufacture and meets the demand that it shall be dust free and shall have no concealed crevices or openings which might harbor insects.

As illustrating-the preferred form of my in,- vention I have shown various details thereof in the following drawings in which Fig. 1 is a side elevation o the as emb ed beekstack;

.Fig. 2 is a ho iz nt l section t k t e l n 2-1.2 of i l;

The invention to whieh the. following description relates deals with improvements in adjustable shelving and particuiarly in bookstacks. The

Fig. 3 is a vertical section taken on the line of g Fig. 4 is'an end elevation of the shelf;

Fig. 5 "is a frontelevation of "the'sheli and its; mounting; Fig. 6 is a detailed vertical section of the rear Shelf u p Fig. 7 is a diagrammatic'front elevation of a modified form of the bookst'acksupported'ti fiatceiling; Fig. 3 is a similar endview of the same; Fig. 9 is a vertical end view Ogtthe d form of the bookstack partly gross Fig. 10 is a planvi'ew'of thesame'alqg 119 line ill-4i) of Fig. 9.; 15

Fig. ll is a detailed front elevation oi the shelf mounting, and

Fig. 12 is an inferior perspective View oi the. modified form of shelf.

Referring to the form shown in Fig. 1 it will 29 be seen that the bookstacl; is mounted in the space between the upper floor i3 and theiower floor 5 3-. Vertical columns extend between the ceiling or the girder iii and the floor atdesirjeid intervals and are in the form of girders M." or he like. The ceiling of the upper'flooi 11: has a pending girder Iii in the form of an I-be I girder has a lower flange [6 which is us mounting of the bookstack. I h bc te sem led i her s n le or 39. double ended and consists [of a top crossbar 'i 'l generallyfin the form of a downwardly openel an: nel which is shaped or bowed the case of being used with the girder .Where the 1690 f stack is supported directly from a flat ceiling the 35 channel bar ii is of course correspondingly straight. .In the case of a double ,ende'd'fb'oekstack, the mid-portion oi the top bani] ca 5 throughthe flanges if: of the gir ierfis f rne we ends H2, is oi'the ueboltearry nuts iQjiB which'the top bar H is firmly clampedtothe bottom of the flanges Iii. In this'vvay'the entire end section 28' of which'the bar ilfforrris apart is supported from and attached to the"'g irder, Abar 26 forms thebottom member of the e seetion 29. The bar ii is likewise preierab ly' 1 channel shape opening upwardly? Exteii g vertically bet'weenth'e top bar 11" and the'bot bar 2! are end bars 22 and23. These latter have a series of pins or lugs 24, 2,4 'extendingfat e la pac d ces h riz r e Q tv d;

ly from the bars 22; 23; Face 1), els 25,25

fastened by riveting, weidi'ngorthe ke opposite sides'oj the bars ll; 21;.22,

this way the end sections 20 are formed as hollow dust-proof sections with smooth outer surfaces.

For greater strength intermediate reinforcing channels 21 are attached between the inner sides of the panels 25, 26.

a The panels 25, 26 also carry parallel metal strips 28, 28 which extend for the full height of the panels. Each strip 23 carries a series of outwardly extending steps and lugs 29. As illustrated in greaterdetail in Fig. 6 the strip 28 is punched outwardly to form the step 29. This step has a front slope 30 and a top seat 3|. The latter forms the support for the rear of the shelf. The strips 28 are applied to the face panels by welding, riveting or the like with the steps 29 properly positioned with respect to the ends 23 which form the support for the shelves at the front. The end sections 20 are held in spaced position one from the other by means of top spacer bars 32 which are bolted or otherwise fastened to the ends of the upper bar H. In like manner spacer bars 33 connect the ends of the bottom bars 2 I.

The bookstack is braced against swinging movement by a strut 34 extending downwardly from the end sections 20 in the vertical'plane of the girder l4 as shown in Fig. 7. The struts 34 have foot extensions connected to the girder I4 30"- by means of the bolts 36.

In many instances it is desirable to separate the opposite sides of the double bookstack. This is provided for by the use of a sheet metal vertical partition 31, the type shown being a known form. The upper end of, the partition 31 is wrapped around a horizontal bar 38 the ends of which rest in stirrups or saddles 39 in the upper sides of the face panels. The lower ends of the partitions 31 have lugs 40 bymeans of which the partition is bolted to the side panel at the lower end.

While the fabrication of an end section 22 in the manner above described is entirely satisfactory, yet there are some instances where such forms are not necessary butmay be replaced by end sections formed of a single piece of sheet metal of appropriate gauge. In Figs. 7 to 11 inclusive I have shown such an arrangement. As illustrated in Figs. 7 and 8 this modified form is shaped at the top to conform to a flat ceiling against which it is to be applied. For this reason the end section 4| has a top that is straight rather than bowed as isthe case in Fig. 1. The top bar 42 is a flat strip applied to the top edge of the section 4| by welding or other suitable vmeans.

applied to the bar 42 before the latter is attached to the section 4|, it follows that bolts 42 are rigidly held in parallel vertical positions against the possibility of turning.

The mode of suspending the bookstack is the same as in the form first described. The end section is raised against either the flange IE or the ceiling 45 and the bolts 44 pass through appropriately formed holes in the girder or ceiling and the sections 20 and 2| can then be drawn up tightly by appropriate nuts.

In Fig. 8 I have shown diagrammatically two successive floors '|3 and 45 in the lower instance illustrating the mode of suspending a bowed bookstack section while in the upper instance the section 4| is of the flat topped type.

The spacer bars 32 are applied to the downwardly extending ends 46 of the top bars 42.

Angle iron ties 41 serve to anchor thebar ends 46 and the spacer bars 32 against the ceiling.

The bottom of the section 4| has a bottom bar 2| and spacing bars 33 serve to brace the end bars 2|. The bookstack is braced against swinging movement as shown in Figs. 7 and 8 by the brackets or struts 34 attached with bolts 36 to the bottoms of the terminal end sections which have been marked 4| and to the adjacent building element such as a wall, column or girder 14. It is further braced against twisting by similar brackets orangle-iron ties 41 attached at the top of the terminal end sections 4| and to the ceiling member 45. The spacer bars 32 and 33 connect the terminal end sections 4| and the intermediate end sections 4| in each bay, and are of suitable shape and rigidity for the lengthof the bays, thus serving to maintain the intermediate end sections 4| in alignment with the terminal end sections 4|. By this arrangement no part of the bookstack rests on the floor but the latter is maintained free from obstruction and readily accessible for cleaning and the like.

As illustrated in Figs. 9 and 10 the side edges of the section 4| have integral horizontally extend ing lugs 48 which serve as seats for the shelves. Inwardly of the side edges of the section 4| and suitably spaced from each row of lugs 48 is a corresponding'series of brackets. These brack-- ets are. made by slotting thesheetmetal to form pairs of adjusting tongues 49 and 50. Of each pair of tongues the lowermost 49 is bent in one direction while the uppermost 56 is bent in the opposite direction; 1 Both tongues 49 and 53 have extensions or ends which are again bent into planes parallel to that of the section 4| as shown in dotted lines in Fig.'10. The extension ends 5| are spaced from the adjacent sides of the -surfaces of the sections 4| by a distance proportioned to the gauge of the metal of which shelves are formed so that flanges on'the shelves may interlock between the sections 4| and theextensions 5| and the several sections 4| will thus be held in definite spaced relation governed by the dimensions of the intervening shelf. In this way the sections 4| are reinforced and prevented from any tendency to buckle or warp either by reason of peculiarity in manufacture or the stresses imposed by the shelf loads.

Referring to Figs. 1 to 5 inclusive I have illustrated metal shelves which are adapted for assembly with the end sections 20 to form the complete bookstack. The shelf denoted generally by the numeral 52 is made of stamped sheet metal of appropriate gauge. The metal is slotted as indicated at 53 and formed to provide aseries of ribs 54 parallel with the front edge 55. The material between the adjacent ribs 54 is bent downwardly into a concave channel 56 the bottom of which is formed by the slot 53. This insures proper support for the books on the shelf, prevents accumulation of dust and insures the bottom of the shelf of freedom from rough edges which might damage the books or injure the one using the shelf. A bar 51 is fitted beneath the front edge 55 of the shelf. The bar extends beyond the length of the shelf having two ends 58 and 59. As shown in Fig. 2 the right end 58 extends coincidental with the main portion of the bar 51. The left end 59, however, is offset a distance equal to the gauge of the metal of the bar 51. This allows the overlapping of the bars of successive shelves as shown in Fig; 2. In order to properly seat upon the round lugs 24,-the ends 51 and: 58 are concaved as shown at 60-. It will bereadily apparent that by suchanarrangement theshelves are centered with respect to the lugs and that any increase in shelf load will tend to correspondingly increase the accuracywith which the bar 5 7 issupported on the lugs 24-.

The front edge of the shelf has a flange folded down over the bar 5'! and up in the rear of the latter as shown in Fig. 3. I

. The rear edge 62 of the shelf has a corresponding flange 63 folded downwardly and up around a rear bar 64. This bar 64, however, does not extend the full length of the shelf but terminates shortof the corners thereof inorder to allow relative movement between the depending flanges on the rear ends of the shelf.

The shelf has opposite ends and 66 which are also formed by bending down flanges from the sheet metal. The front ends of the flanges 65 and 66 may if desired be welded or otherwise attached to the bar 5'! or the flange 5!. As shown in Fig. 2 the flange 66 is spaced from the flange 6! and the top of the shelf cut away to accommodate the offset end 59 of the bar 57. In

" the rear, however, the flanges 65 and fitterminate short of the rear flange 65 in a spaced depending tongue or detent 67. The flange is cut away in front of the tongue 61 to provide a slope t8 and a recessed seat 69 which latter conform respectively to the incline 30 and seat 3! on the brackets 29.

Itis possible to slide this shelf in place from the front of the bookstack between the end sections '28. The depth of the rear flange 63 permits the latter to pass between adjacent brackets 29 and to drop behind them with the flanges 65 and 56 resting on the brackets by means of the seats 68. In this position the tongue 61 prevents sliding movement of the shelf in a foward direction or in. other words locks the shelf into .place.

. During this operation theends 58 and 59 of the front bar-51 fit over the lugs 24 with the end 58 in place in front of the oifset end 59 of the adjacent shelf section as shown in Fig. 2. I

Any slight inequality in manufacture or as sembly will be corrected and the four points of support all brought into normal-operation by the slight distortion in the. shelf made possible through the open corners.

These shelves may be installed in any desired spacing arrangement and where a double section is used such as illustrated in Fig. 1, by omitting partition 37, shelves on both sections may be on the same level to provide in effect a single shelf of double depth.

In the modification shown in Figs. 7 to 12 in elusive the same general design of shelf is possible. The shelf 10 is made of sheet metal having a series of parallel ribs H produced by slotting the metal and forming the depending grooves '52 having inwardly turned ends 13 thus forming a slot 14. The front flange I5 of the shelf is at- I tached to and folded down over the front bar 57.

This bar also has one end 58 and the opposite end 59 offset as above described. The rear flange '75 is cut away at each corner to provide necessary clearance over the tongues 49 and 50. As these tongues are of different elevations it follows that the cut-away portion in one instance is shallow and in the other instance deep.

One side flange 1B is bent down and provides the cut-away edge 11 and a seat 18 which is adapted to fit over the lower tongue 49.

The opposite end of the shelf is bent down to form the flange 19. This flange is also cut away at the rear to form'the elevated edge or detent and a recessed seat 8|. The seat Si is proportioned to fit over the upper tongue 50. When the flanges are seated upon the tongues 49 and 50 the flanges are behind the extensions 5i so that the latter serve to hold the end section 4| into a vertical position close to the shelf ends and free from buckling or warping.

As the ends of the shelves are fitted over th tongues a9 and 58, the front bar 51 fits in between'the lugs 8. upon which latter the ends 53 and 59 rest. In Fig. 11, I have shown the ends 553 and 59 to have tapering bottom edges ending in a substantially horizontal seat 82. In this way theweight of the shelf tends to accurately center the shelf with respect to the end sections ll and maintain the end sections 41 accurately at their predetermined spacing. I I

By building up a bookstack in a manner apparent from the above description it is found that material advantage is obtained due to the substantial reduction in the material used and the labor of installation. When considerable shelf space is to be provided the weight of the material is a consequential item both for the cost of the bookstack and on account of the load to be imposed on the floor. With the use of fabricated sheet metal as shown in Fig. 1 or the single stamped metal ends t i, it is possible to materially reduce the weight of the bookstack without sacrificing strength or rigidity.

This bookstack is assembled fromstock material which is readily available. The fabrication of the several parts is adapted for machine operation at low cost and permits working to close dimensions and accurate proportions.

The bookstack is exceedingly flexible in its arrangement as shown in Figs. 7 and 8. The stack may be installed or removed without material change in the usual building construction.

As assembled the form of shelves and. their mounting upon the end sections is such as to increase the stability of the stack with increase of the shelf load. At the same time the stack is maintained free from dust and accessible for ready use or cleaning.

The essential ideas of this invention while illustrated by way of example only are capable of great variation in size, proportion and minor details without departing from the scope of the.

invention as defined in the following claims.

What I claim is:

l. A bookstack comprising two or more end sections, each formed with upper and lower end bars, means extending upwardly from the upper end bar for suspending the section, spacing bars connecting adjacent end sections, a face panel on each of the sections, a partition removably held by said end sections, shelf-supporting means on the face panels, other shelf-supporting means on the side edges of the sections, shelves carried by said shelf-supporting means and means on said shelves to prevent the end sections from moving away from their normal positions.

2. An end section for a bookstack comprising upper and lower end bars, means extending upwardly from the upper end bar for suspending the section, a panel connecting the; said end bars, shelf-supporting means extending laterally from the surface of said panel, and other shelf-supporting means extending from one of the side edges of said panel.

3. An end section for a bookstack comprising upper and lower end bars, means extending upwardly from the upper end bar for suspending the section, partitioning meansconnecting the said end bars, shelf supporting means extending laterally in opposite directions from said partitioning means and other shelf-supporting means extending outwardly from the side edges of the section.

4. An end section for a bookstack comprising upper and lower end bars, means on the upper end bar for suspending the section, spaced parallel side bars extending from the upper tothe lower end bars, face panels attached to opposite sides of the said side and end bars, and shelfsupporting means on one of said panels.

5; An end section for a bookstack comprising upper and lower end bars, means on the upper end bar for suspending the section, spaced parallel side bars extending from the upper to the lower end bars, face panels attached to opposite sides of the said side and end bars, shelf-supporting means on one of the said panels and shelf-supporting means on one of the said bars.

6. An end section for a bookstack comprising upper and lower end bars, means extending upwardly from the upper end bar for suspending the section, a panel connecting the said end bars, adjacent tongues extending laterally in opposite directions from the panel and shelf-supporting means extending outwardly from the side edges of the panel.

7. An end section for a bookstack comprising upper and lower end bars, means extending upwardly from the upper end bar for suspending the section, a panel connecting the said end bars, adjacent tongues extending laterally in opposite directions from the panel, offset ends on the tongues spaced parallel to the panel, and shelfsupporting means extending outwardly from the side edges of the panel.

8. An end section for a bookstack comprising upper and lower end bars, a U-bolt extending upwardly from the upper end bar for suspending the section, side bars connecting the end bars, face panels attached to opposite sides of the bars, a member vertically disposed on one of said panels, shelf-supporting means on said member,

. and shelf-supporting means on one of said side bars.

9. An end section for a bookstack comprising upper and lower end bars, a U-bolt extending upwardly from the upper end bar for suspending the section, side bars connecting the end bars, face panels attached to opposite sides of the bars, a reinforcement between said panels, a member vertically disposed on one of said panels, shelfsupporting means on said member, and shelfsupporting means on one of said side bars.

10. In combination, end sections for a bookstack, each comprising supporting. means, a panel and shelf-supporting means on the panel; a. shelf formed of sheet metal having downturned flanges, recessed seats in said flanges for resting on said shelf-supporting means, means on said flanges for locking with said shelf-supporting means to prevent disengagement of the shelf from the panel and spacer bars attached to and extending between said end sections.

11. In combination, end sections for a'bookstack, each section comprising a panel and shelfsupporting means on the panel, a shelf, seating means on the shelf for engaging said shelf-supporting means, said seating means having downwardly concave or inclined faces such that the weight of the load on the shelf serves to insure the accurate centering of the seating means on the shelf-supporting means. I

12. In combination, end sections for a bookstack, each section comprising a panel and shelfsupporting means on the panel, spacer bars connecting adjacent end sections to maintain the desired distance between the shelf-supporting.

means on adjacent sections, a shelf, seating means on the shelf for engaging said shelf-supporting means, said seating means having downwardly concave or inclined faces such that the weight of the load on the shelf serves'to insure the accurate centering of the seating means on the thus spaced shelf-supporting means.

13. A bookstack adapted for use in a room having vertical members and a ceiling member, said bookstackcomprising a plurality of terminal and intermediate end sections, means at the top of each end section for-suspending the section, means attached to one terminal end section for holding it spaced from the vertical member of the room and against horizontal displacement, means on an end section to space itffrom the ceiling member and against torsional displacement, spacer bars connecting adjacent end sections, shelf-supporting means on the end sections, and shelves carried by said shelf-supporting means. 1

14. An end section for a bookstack comprising upper and lower end bars, a panel connecting the end bars, means on the upper end bar for suspending the section and. shelf supporting means on the panel, said end bars extending outwardly- 15. An end section'for a bookstack comprising upper and lower end bars, means on the upper end bar for suspending the section, side bars connecting the end bars, face panels attached to opposite sides of the bars, shelf-supporting means on one of said face panels and cooperating shelfsupporting means on one of the said side bars.

16. A bookstack having end sections comprising thin vertical metal panels capable of sustaining the tension caused by the hanging weight of the shelf-load, means on the upper end of each panel for attachment to asupport, shelves, means on the panels for supporting the shelves and spacer bars attached to and extending between adjacent end sections. v

17. An end section for a bookstack comprising a thin vertical metal panel capable of sustaining the tension caused by the hanging weight of the shelf-load but free to flex laterally, a reinforcement across the upper end of the panel sustaining the bending stresses from the tension in the panel, said reinforcement extending outwardly beyond the side edges of the panel for attachment purposes, suspending means on the upper end of the panel and means on the panel for supporting a shelf.

JOHN HOWARD FORD. 

